North Korea's New Missiles Are Eerily Familiar

The three new missiles North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has tested over the past week are eerily familiar to military experts: They look just like a controversial and widely copied missile the Russian military has deployed to Syria and has been actively trying to sell abroad for years. Ending a pause in ballistic missile launches that began in late 2017 and alarming North Korea's neighbors, Kim personally supervised the launch of the first missile from the country's east coast on Saturday and two more from the west on Thursday; all splashed down in the Pacific. The missiles bear a strong resemblance to the Russian-designed Iskander, a short-range, nuclear-capable ballistic missile that has been in the Russian arsenal for more than a decade. Much more from the AP:

• "There are Russian technology fingerprints all over it," said Marcus Schiller, a leading expert on North Korean missiles who is based in Germany. He added that short of actually procuring the missiles from Russia, the North could have had key parts delivered from somewhere else, perhaps not directly from Russia, while making components such as the outer shell, or airframe, domestically.
• The Iskander, or something like it, would be of particular interest to North Korea. It's designed to fly at a flattened-out altitude of around 25 miles and to make in-flight guidance adjustments. Both capabilities exploit weaknesses in the US and South Korean missile defenses that are now in place, primarily Patriot missile batteries and the THAAD anti-missile defense system.

• The Iskander is also quicker to launch because of its solid fuel engine and thus harder to destroy on the ground. It's also more accurate because of its advanced guidance system.
• Michael Elleman, director of the Nonproliferation and Nuclear Policy Program at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said further analysis of the missiles' performance will provide clues as to whether it was produced by Russia. "If its flight path and accuracy were marginal or inconsistent with known Iskander trajectories and performance, then I think some form of local development with external technical assistance is more likely," he said. "The key here is that one cannot make a new system without undertaking certain development steps. I have seen no evidence of such activity." Initial reports suggested at least one of the tests did involve an Iskander-like trajectory.
• The Iskander missile system has been part of the Russian arsenal since 2006. The Iskander-M version used by the Russian military is more than 21 feet long, can weigh more than 9,000 pounds, and has a range of about 250 to 310 miles. Russia first tested the Iskander in combat in 2008, against Georgia.
• The Iskander missiles have long been a source of tension in Europe and were cited by President Trump as a key reason behind his decision in February to break with the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, which bans production, testing, and deployment of land-based cruise and ballistic missiles with a range of 310 to 3,410 miles.
• Such missiles only take a few minutes to reach their targets, leaving no time for decision-makers and raising the likelihood of a global nuclear conflict over a false launch warning. Moscow claims the Iskander-M's range is just below the operational limit and should not be considered a treaty violation.

(Trump has commented on the launches.)